Beautiful Winter Yet Longing for Spring

I woke up yesterday longing for spring.  The focus of my attention and day dreaming was the thought of how beautiful all the landscaping I designed and built last year will look in year 2!  My ubiquitous ornamental grasses and bamboo plants that I planted last year will really take off this year.  A friend recently told me this about plants: "In the first year they sleep, the second year they creep, the third year they LEAP!"  I love that!  Hoping they do a little "leaping" in year 2.
The bamboo that I planted is a cold hardy (survives down to 20 below zero!) clumping species named Fargesia Rufa.  I love that it has remained green throughout winter so far and its leafy culms are the only splash of green in the Hoth-like world of white that is January in Western New York.  I made sure that I gave them plenty of straw compost mulch to keep them warm and so far they appear to be quite happy.

 This row here is along the barn between the barn and the front arena.  It was one large bamboo plant that I split into 6 smaller plants.  The will be ~ 12 ft tall when mature.  Can't wait!  STUNNING!

I never cut the ornamental grasses back until March because I love the way their dusty brown spiky leaves look bursting out of the snow.  Once the heavy snow weighs them down I like that because they then act as their own insulators and mulch protection from the cold.  This is a great guide: Pocket Guide to Ornamental Grasses (Timber Press Pocket Guides)  Take it with you to the nursery!

This one here is called Miscanthus Sinensis Gracillimus.  Love it!  I planted a row of them along our drive way.

This is Sargastrum....need to get more this spring.  Really digging it's look.